Cover Story: New tech war narrative in post-Trump era

IN the US-China trade war, Donald Trump’s administration made the tech sector the main battlefield, placing the semiconductor segment in particular in the cross-hairs of the tech cold war.

As a result, Chinese tech giants Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, ZTE Corp and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC) were among the major casualties of rising US-Sino tensions. Even companies such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) were caught in the crossfire.

Where is the global semiconductor industry headed now with the election of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the US?

Over the last couple of years, Malaysia’s tech sector has benefitted somewhat from the trade diversion that resulted from the trade war.

Should Biden adopt a softer approach on China, will the trend of relocation come to an end?

Captains of the tech industry tell The Edge they hope Biden’s administration will make America business-friendly again.

Nevertheless, they concede that POTUS, be it Trump or Biden, will always place America’s interests first, and hence, the long-term trade war narrative is not likely to change significantly.

Penang-based automated test equipment (ATE) manufacturer ViTrox Corp Bhd co-founder and executive vice-president Steven Siaw Kok Tong believes Biden can bring more trade certainty and stability with policy consistency and implementation.

“This will enable our customers, especially in China, to better manage and predict their capital investments and capacity expansions over the next few years. We can expect fewer disruptions due to overnight and frequent policy changes,” he says. He adds that it is too early to assess the impact of Biden’s presidency.

“It will very much depend on president-elect Biden’s direction with regard to the US-China trade relationship. Fortunately, Malaysia has maintained a neutral stance all this while. Therefore, I’m of the opinion that the situation will remain status quo for local E&E (electrical and electronics) companies, at least for the near term.”